Overview

In the context of this rapidly changing world, Rachel Worth explores the ways in which the clothing of the rural working classes was represented visually in paintings and photographs and by the literary sources of documentary, autobiography and fiction, as well as by the particular pattern of survival and collection by museums of garments of rural provenance. Rachel Worth explores ways in which clothing and how it is represented throws light on wider social and cultural aspects of society, as well as how 'traditional' styles of dress, like men's smock-frocks or women's sun-bonnets, came to be replaced by 'fashion'. Her compelling study, with black & white and colour illustrations, both adds a broader dimension to the history of dress by considering it within the social and cultural context of its time and discusses how clothing enriches our understanding of the social history of the Victorian period.

Full Product Details

9781784533960

Table of Contents

Reviews

Well-documented. Summing Up: Highly recommended. * B.B.Chico, Regis University, CHOICE *

`There is great deal of original evidence and analysis here, as well as insights into the often-contradictory impulses at play within Victorian art and literature in its depiction of ways country people dressed. It is particularly fascinating to read about the symbolic and mythic status of landscape over this period, and to have dress foregrounded as a crucial element within both debates about and visualisations of the countryside during a time of rapid industrialisation.' - Rebecca Arnold, Oak Foundation Senoir Lecturer in History of Dress & Textiles, The Courtauld Institute of Art

`There is great deal of original evidence and analysis here, as well as insights into the often-contradictory impulses at play within Victorian art and literature in its depiction of ways country people dressed. It is particularly fascinating to read about the symbolic and mythic status of landscape over this period, and to have dress foregrounded as a crucial element within both debates about and visualisations of the countryside during a time of rapid industrialisation.' - Rebecca Arnold, Oak Foundation Senoir Lecturer in History of Dress & Textiles, The Courtauld Institute of Art, `A multifaceted and nuanced narrative underlies these robust garments. The text deftly and expertly contrasts and explores the layers of social hierarchy, cultural influence, economic reality, and material uncertainty that make this such a compelling field for investigation.... it offers a reference text that is both subtle and challenging, and one that confronts the enduring paradox of apparently precious collections that are comprised of seemingly unimportant, disposable, and outmoded things.' - Dr Oliver Douglas, Curator of Collections, Museum of English Rural Life, University of Reading

Author Information

Rachel Worth is Professor of History of Dress and Fashion at the Arts University Bournemouth, UK.

Tab Content 6

Customer Reviews

Recent Reviews

Countries Available